A young South Coast filmmaker has told the story of a modern-day brotherhood, where mates finish a conversation with: "I love you brother."
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Narooma's Monty O'Brien, 23, tells a personal story of friendship through his short film, Brothers.
His friends, who he considers brothers, narrate their unique and special bond to hopefully inspire young men to be more compassionate.
Monty created the film earlier this year and was excited to share it with the community.
"It's such and organic project and I wanted to share it locally," he said.
"I had all my friends in one area at one time, and saw the opportunity to create a time capsule of our friendship.
"It then developed into an opportunity to show alternative ways that males can react with kindness and compassion and look after each other."
Monty says young men often hide their inner feelings and display bravado to protect themselves and seem strong.
When filming Brothers, Monty aimed to show ways to interact with kindness and how it's not "uncool".
His mates all have their differences, but Monty said their bond will forever be strong with two key ingredients - compassion and open-mindedness.
"We are all fairly different in a lot of ways, but our interests cross over," he said.
"I consider them as brothers, just as much as my blood brother."
They have all gone their separate ways after school, pursuing careers in visual arts, music, hospitality and disability care ... but they still keep in touch.
"We have been best friends since kindy," Monty said.
"Because we are living in different areas and can't travel to visit each other, we do a trivia night on Zoom every Tuesday and have a bit of a party - it's been fun."
With challenges thrown at today's youth, Monty said friendships were more important than ever.
To achieve a strong friendship, he passed on his advice.
"Put yourself out there, drop that shield and become more vulnerable," he said.
"And be there for others when they're having a hard time. You can build a connection when you are supportive of someone else."
Monty is a self-taught filmmaker and director. He moved to Sydney to pursue his passion.
"I have been making films since I was 13," he said.
Growing up on the South Coast, he would film his mates surfing and skating.
"I developed a real strong passion for it," he said.
Monty is drawn towards an abstract-style of story telling. He loves to create narratives inspired by expressions of young-male energy.
Over the past few years, Monty has taken his work more seriously. He began working with different fashion brands and creating music videos.
He connected with experienced directors and film producers, which "fast-tracked" his learning.
"Over the next few years I am going to do more short films, music videos and commercial work to develop more knowledge in the industry," he said.
His dream is to one day produce television shows and feature films.
A live screening of Brothers will feature during a film night at Bend and Sip Bar at Narooma when restrictions ease.
Starring roles in the film were: Luke Seaman, Chris Mather, Zak Cowley-Hilton, Nicky Seaman. Other appearances include: Jarrah Seaman, Tom Stokes, James Holley, Braith Mazz, Digger Cowie, Jack Newton, Rex Lee, Flynn Osta-Meier, Paddy Jago, Alby Betteridge, Brandon Feledyk, Fred Hannebery, Sebastian Hannebery, Dubby.
To watch on YouTube, CLICK HERE.
Claudia Ferguson
Twice weekly
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